Recommendations on prenatal screening and the connections to other diseases such as thyroid dysfunction

Abstract

Abstract The aim of general maternal-foetal care is to ensure an uncomplicated birth of a healthy baby to a healthy mother. There is a large range of screening tests used during pregnancy: for gestational diabetes, infection, rhesus-D status, thyroid dysfunction, as well as other tests. An important part of prenatal care is the screening of major aneuploidies, primarily for Down’s syndrome. This screening is possible in either the first or second trimester, or in both. Management of this type of screening is very similar around the world. Hypothyroidism can affect the psychomotor development of the child. Thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), autoantibodies against thyroperoxidase (TPOAb), and free thyroxin (FT4) were determined within our group of 7530 pregnant women. Elevated concentrations of TSH were found in 5.1%, suppression was found in 2.9% and 11.5% were TPOAb positive. Either a familial or personal history of thyroid or autoimmune diseases was present in 58.3% of those women who tested positive on any thyroid test. At minimum, 40% of women TPOAb positive during pregnancy have some kind of thyroid disorders after delivery. These results support the efficacy of general thyroid function screening in early pregnancy, as well as the follow-up after delivery of those women who are positive.